Jingle Bells
Jingle Bells free kids sheet music is one of those need-to-know pieces for beginner piano players. It has so many things going for it, both for the student, and from the perspective of the teacher!
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This cute and singable little Christmas tune is a favorite of young kids:
Here is Jingle Bells, as I give it to my beginners:
Download Jingle Bells for beginner piano students
This easy piano music uses all 5 fingers of the right hand, stays in one "position", can be improved by the addition of left-hand chords, and, like Mary Had a Little Lamb, is easy to transpose!
Here is the Christmas song with chord symbols:
Download Christmas song with chord symbols for beginner piano students
And here is how I actually have my students play the song:
Download free kids sheet music
I suggest you give it to your piano students without the chord symbols initially, or else make a point of asking them "What does this letter C mean here? And this letter F? And this G?" Why ask them this? Because a few of them will jump to the conclusion that the letter is telling them the name of the note below, even if they know better. So, depending on their familiarity with chords, you might be better off with a plain sheet. Or, start in the very first week asking THEM to play the chords for YOUR right-hand melody.
The first week or so, if they already have the experience of putting LH chords to a RH melody, you might suggest that they use just a C chord the whole song, with no chord change, as in Indian Dance. Tell them the song will sound prettier if they play it up high on the piano, so that it does sound "more like bells". After a week or so like this, you can start adding in the "G pinch" chord (the G7 made with the f & g, using the 2 &1 fingers of the left hand) and the "little F" chord (f & a, again with the 2 & 1 fingers of the left hand). The G pinch chord is easy, especially after playing Mary Had a Little Lamb, but beginners have a hard time with the Little F chord, because it necessitates the stretch of the thumb. Sometimes, after a struggle, I just let young pianists substitute the G7 chord for the F chords, and we come back to the F chord later.
Have fun with this well-loved Christmas music!
Comments
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Lori, homeschool mom, songwriter/musician and private music teacher:
Just wanted to say "thank you" for this site and for allof your dedication and hard work! I have literally combed the internet for months on end to find free and "doable" resources for my young students and for my own children... I will be returning to this site over and over again from here on out and am excited to present some of the tools I found today on here to my voice and piano students later this week! My thirteen-year old son is happily, as I type, working with the guitar chord sheets I just printed for him!
Miggy, United Kingdom:
I've just found your website and I think I've died and gone to heaven. I've just taken up the piano again after 35 years absence... buying sheet music was getting expensive/a luxury. The tips are great too. I also live in the middle of nowhere so buying from a shop is not really an option unless I fancy a 120 mile round trip for a piece of sheet music!
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Carrie,Voice and Piano Teacher:
This site is FABULOUS. For all the reasons you explain on the site itself--this is exactly what piano teachers need! (I still need to go look at the vocal music). Wow. THANK YOU SO MUCH!
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Kim in Washington:
My son is hooked...I've been introducing piano to my son on and off for a year or so, but he's not had much interest. Then I gave him "Monsters Everywhere". He loved playing it with the organ sound on our piano. He memorized it that week and I'm printing off the other Halloween songs to keep him going. I love the detailed instructions on teaching since he is my first student! Thanks so much.
Dana:
That is so neat that your son has experienced the magic and mystery of music through this little song. That is so exciting to me. Thanks for writing, Kim!
Marta:
Thank you for the free downloads! I'm a private teacher and I teach piano and beginner voice as well. :) I've been running my studio for about a year and I've come across the same issue; I don't want my students to have to purchase an entire supplemental book for only a couple of songs. So thank you for this site...some great downloads!!
Joy:
Thank you. Just wanted to say I found your website by mistake but what a blessing it has been. I am a missionary wife living in Spain (for many, many years) and I teach piano to Spanish children and adults. I have the barrier of very few usable things in Spanish, and can so identify with the need to write things suitable for the student...
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Matt:
THIS SITE IS AMAZING!!... Thank you so much for your hard work getting these on the web, you have made many children very happy!!
Ashley:
Thank you so so much for this site! I'm teaching my litte sister and everything up here is absolutely amazing! I will definitely be making a donation as soon as possible! Thank you again! You're wonderful!
Stasi:
AH!!!!! I am so happy to find a helpful site like this. I started to give piano lessons to one little girl from church and two girls requested voice lessons this spring. Since then, word got out and going into the fall I have 18 students. I am so excited, but I'm running out of materials that they can borrow, and I, like you hate telling the parents to buy more books. Because I have such a diverse group of students I spend SO much time making supplemental material and I feel like I have to pick through other websites, to only find one or two useful things. I am so thankful for the wealth of supplement that you have offered here! And it's all SO user friendly!! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!
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Marybeth:
I love your site! It has been an incredible resource forme as a Music teacher. I love your ideas and the music you share...
Rossana:
Greetings from Perú, South America. I like your blog, I teach piano to children, and it is good for all the piano teachers.